Perfectly Running 240 Wagon Just Stopped Working Tonight!

Hi! My beautiful 1993 240 wagon just stopped tonight, and I can't
figure out what could be the problem. Funnily enough, I'd just been
thinking earlier in the day how beautifully it's been running, which
held true right up until the moment it simply stopped running!

First, I drove it to the post office and parked. When I came out of
the post office a few minutes later, the car wouldn't start.
Everything seemed to be working - it cranked, the electricals were
working, etc., but the motor just wouldn't start. I shut off all the
electricals (I don't know why, but it just seemed like something to
do), and the next time I turned the key the car started and I was on
my way. But I only drive about three or four blocks when the engine
just suddenly cut out. I was able to glide to a stop at the curb
(luckily, in a legal parking space), and I tried many times again to
get it to start. I put it in and out of gear a couple of times as
well (again, I don't know why, but it was something to do -- the
electricals were all still off), and it was the same as outside the
post office (minus the starting at the end).

So, the car now sits where it died. It's cranking, the electical
system is working, but it just won't start. (And, yes, it does have
gas.) I figured there was no point in calling the auto club tonight,
as the car is legally, parked, I was only a few blocks from home, and
my mechanic doesn't open until morning. I thought I'd go back in the
morning and, if the car still won't start, then I'll call the auto
club and, worse case scenario, have the car towed to my mechanic,
whose about 3 or so milse away. But any suggestions in the meantime?
Any ideas on what might be going on?

Thanks!
Patricia

 

Sounds like a dead crank position sensor.

 

Could be also the fuel pump relay. Sometimes the failure is in the solder
joint between the heavy armature and the circuit board. Often one set of
contacts that switched the main pump is worn but can be refurbished to get
you moving.

 

I don't suppose either of the things suggested are incredibly
inexpensive to fix, are they? (And, no, I can't do any of the work
myself.)

Thanks,
Patricia

 

Check for fuel, check for spark.

 

Fuel pump relay is a common culprit.
A quick check. Open the door, hang your head out under the car while you
bump the starter. Soon as you release the key, you should hear the fuel
pump buzzing under the car. It only buzzes for a second after the key is
released. If you hear the buzz, the pump and relay are good. It isn't
loud so you'll need to pick a quiet time to check.
Time to look at ignition. Don't know anything about the crank position
sensor so no ideas there. You can check for spark with a timing light,
old sparkplug, or your finger if you're in need of a perm.
Pull a plug wire, put the old plug in it, lay it on the valve cover so
it's grounded and turn the motor. A screw driver can be substituted for
the plug but you have to hold it (by the plastic handle!) very close but
not touching something metal like the valve cover while someone else
turns the key.
Fuel pump relay is easy... if you're handy with a soldering iron.
Touch all the solder joints on the board to reflow them.
It's located behind the carpet on the firewall in the passenger footwell.
http://davebarton.com/volvorelays.html

 

If it gives you an idea of my competence in these areas, of all the
things you listed, the only thing I'm confident I could manage is
opening the car door. Beyond that, I would need a qualified mechanic
(or a boyfriend handy with car tools rather than surgical ones).

 

Does the tach needle (if it has one) twitch at all when you crank the
engine? I believe this year is one that has an ignition power stage
bolted to the inner fender, these fail sometimes and give a no spark
condition and the tach will be dead as a doornail. Also check that the
camshaft is rotating, you can do this by removing the oil fill cap and
having someone crank the engine, if the timing belt is ok you'll see the
cam lobes flipping around. A broken belt is no big deal on these motors.

 

All my life I go along feeling confident and competent, able to manage
just fine on my own. Then I come to this board and, within 24 hours, I
feel like the biggest, dumbest, girliest girl on the planet.
Seriously, guys, when I say I can't do this stuff on my own, I really
can't. I don't know half (okay, more than half) the parts you're
talking about. "Check that the camshaft is rotating"? Seriously?
"Pull a plug wire"? "Check all the solder points"? Holy cats! I
wish like hell that any one of you guys was my boyfriend, husband,
brother, friend, or kindly next door neighbor so I could just say,
"Um, could you just show me what you're talking about?" But,
unfortunately, I'm at the mercy of my mechanic. I'm going to walk
down to the car this morning. If it starts, I'll drive it to my
mechanic (or at least as drive it as far as it'll go). If it doesn't
start, I'll call the auto club for a tow. I was really just hoping
for some guidance as to what I might expect the mechanic to find and
how complicated/expensive a problem it might turn out to be. But I
sincerely appreciate your know-how and confidence in my ability to do
more than fill the gas tank once a month!

 

Ignition likely, timing belt not... since the OP said it ran then it
didn't, then it did.
I'm voting pump relay or one of those sparky bits under the hood.

 

Oh I missed that last part, yeah if a timing belt breaks it stops
running and won't start again. Usually sounds a little funny cranking too.

 

I don't know you but I'm confident you could hear the fuel pump if you
listened for it...
Point we're all making here is 'qualified' mechanics sometimes aren't
and one that doesn't know these things could rack you up a large bill
trying to fix something that's an easy fix if they had a clue.
Looks like you're in the Virginia area. Might narrow the location a bit
and ask the group for referrals to a good Volvo shop.

 

Just out of curiosity, what makes you think I'm in the Virginia area?
I'm actually in Evanston, IL (Chicago area). The car's at the
mechanic now. These are foreign car specialists who've taken care of
al my 240s. Since I had to take it there anyway, I also asked them to
check on the other two problems I posted here about recently
(replacing antenna; shift lock engaging when it shouldn't). Fingers
crossed everything turns out to be minor. To put a happy spin on
things, at least the car broke down close to home, I was able to glide
it into a legal parking spot until this morning, my auto club covered
towing, it's perfect weather for long walks, and the IRS just assured
me they're sending me a $600 check. So, all things considered, the
situation could be a lot worse.

 

Well we're not psychic, if you're unable to make these checks, then take
the car to a mechanic, they will diagnose and repair the problem, and it
will cost whatever it costs. Unless you can work on it yourself, you'll
pay someone else to work on it either way, and it certainly won't cost
more than replacing the car.

 

I understand you're not psychic. That's why I said in the beginning
that I'm unable to do the work myself.

FYI, the mechanic just called. Apparently the problem was caused by a
bad connection at the fuse box, which they've taken care of. They
also installed the antenna for me. They also said the distributor cap
and rotor(?) need to be replaced. Grand total will be $322. They
also said that my rear shocks are leaking and I should get that taken
care of soon, which will cost $539, but I can wait for a while to take
care of that. All in all, nowhere near as bad as I thought.

Thanks, everyone, for your good help. I always know I'll find
knowledgeable and helpful people on this group.

Patricia

 

I looked at the NNTP posting host IP and it is in VA.
http://www.eventid.net/cgi-bin/whois.pl?lic=&domain=64.12.116.67

Anyway... be sure to post back what caused it once it's fixed and your
experience will be added to the collective knowledge of the group.

fwiw, I went through almost exactly the same thing a while back in my
'83 Wagon. It *always* starts second click and never stalls. Well, it
stalled one time and took a bit of cussing and grinding to get it
started again.
Ran ok for a few days, then stalled again. grumble grumble...
Finally quit for good $180.00 away from home (no AAA, had to pay cash.)
Replaced the fuel pump relay and it fired right up... only to quit again
a couple days later and $80.00 away from home.
Checked the fuel pump. No buzzzz... Replaced that and all has been well
since.
Before then, I never noticed the sound the fuel pump makes. Now I listen
for it every time I start up.

 

The fuel pump died in my 240 about 100 feet from my house while a friend
happened to be driving right behind me. The odd thing is the pump still
ran, it just wasn't pumping any fuel. I took it apart and found that the
nubs that drive the impeller had sheared off.

 

ouch! That would shirly mess with your diagnosis.
I put 12V to mine and it didn't run. If it did, I'd likely still be
chasing the problem (or had torched the car by now *g*)

 

Ah, don't do that. The Y chromosome does not confer mechanical aptitude
and I couldn't do a goodly number of the things that were bandied about,
either.

 

FYI, I posted here recently about a problem I've been having for the
past few months with the shift lock engaging even though I was
stepping on the brake before trying to shift. The problem has
disappeared since they did the work I outlined on this thread. Makes
me wonder if it wasn't perhaps fuse-related?